Bunsen burner.



F. W. MAGEE.

BUNSEN BURNER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. a0, 1918.

1,294,504. Patented Feb. 18, 1919 111/ I III rinirnn san'rns rarnnr clarion.

FREDERICK WILLIAM MAGEE, OF LONDON, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO THOMAS WILLIAM BAKER, OF LONDON, ONTARIO, CANADA.

BUNSEN BURNER.

Application filed March 30, 1918.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK \VILLIAM MAGEE, of the city of London, in the county of Middlesex, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bunsen Burners, of which the following is the specification.

My invention relates to improvements in Bunsen burners particularly adaptable to hot water heaters and the object of the invention is to devise means whereby the rate of flow of gas passing to the burner mouth is unaffected by the draft of whatever inten sity created in the bunsen, at the same time providing means for preventing burning out of the gauze located in the mouth of the Bunsen burner, modifying the noise due to the rush of gas passing through the burner and preventing explosion which occurs when lighting or extinguishing the gas and it con sists essentially of the following arrangement and construction of parts as hereinafter more particularly explained.

Figure 1, is a perspective view of the Bunsen burner.

Fig. 2, is a cross section through Fig. 1.

Fig. 3, is a cross section on line w-g Fig. 2.

Fig. 4, is a perspective detail of my equilibrant or draft controlling device.

In the drawings like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the various figures.

1 indicates the burner base provided with a supply pipe 2. The burner base is provided with vertical passages 3 and a connected together by a cross by-pass 5 intermediately of its height. 6 indicates a nipple secured in the upper end of the passage 3. indicates a. controlling screw screwed into the lower end of the passage 3 so as to more or less close the open end of the supply duct 2 entering the passage3. 8 indicates a controlling screw screwed into the passage e1 so as to more or less close the open end of the bypass 5 at the point of entrance into the passage 4. By unscrewing the screw 7 the supply of gas from the supply duct into the orifice 3 is controlled.

If it is desired to reduce the rateof speed of the gas passing through the nipple 6 the screw 8 is'unscrewed so as to more or less open the by-pass 5 allowing leakage of gas into the passage 4 thereby reducing the pres Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 18, 1919.

Serial No. 225,796.

sure in the passage 3. By this means the rate of flow of gas is reduced to the required speed no matter what the pressure'is which exists in the supply pipe.

9 indicates a Bunsen tube, which is supported upon the supply duct 2 and passes through an orifice 10 formed in the base plate 11. 12 indicates a cap for the upper end of the tube in which is secured a gauze screen 13.

Under ordinary conditions when gas passes from the burner base 1 up the Bunsen tube a. draft is created in the tube by air passing upward again increasing the rate of flow of gas before it reaches the mouth of the burner thereby upsetting conditions which have been produced by the burner base. In order to overcome this I have provided the controlling device or equilibra'nt which I will now describe.

14 and 15 indicate vertical slots formed in the upper end of the tube 9 diametrically opposite each other. 16 indicates a strip of sheet metal which is folded double and is inserted at its ends in the slots let and '15.

' The folded portions 16 and 16 of the strip 16 are provided with wings l7 and 18 which are substantially semi-circular in form. These wings 17 and 18 are bent outwardly to the required angle in order to more or less close the central portion of the tube.

It will be understood that the draft in the tube is greater in the center than at the sides as at the sides the gas comes into frictional contact with the sides of the tube and is retarded thereby. By means of the wings 17 and 18 this central draft is checked and the more the wings 17 and 18 are bent out ward or expanded laterally toward the horizontal the greater their checking power so that where conditions are such that the draft is very great and a high pressure of gas exists the wings 17 and 18 are bent very near the horizontal, whereas where the gas pres sure is weak, the wings 17 and 18 may be forced or contracted laterally into contact thereby presenting practically no obstruction to the flow of gas as it passes to the burner month. By this means I provide a draft regulating device which is laterally expansible or contractible within the tube by merely bending the wings toward or from each other.

It has also been found that where the intensity of the flow of gas is increased without any controlling means being provided that the center of the gauze screen becomes quickly burnt out by reason of the increased energy of gas in the center. By my device the central draft is deflected toward the sides of the screen thereby reducing its energy and preventing burning out of the screen. Also the draft is so controlled that the noise produced by the forcing of the gas through the tube is modified and at the same time the force of explosion produced when lighting or extinguishing the gas is eliminated. Exploding of the gas at this time acts in cases where a pilot light is used for the lighting of the burner to put out such pilot light and thereby allow of gas collecting when it is turned on which might result in a dangerous explosion.

Attempts have been made to control the force of draft by inserting a damper in the gas outlet pipe of the water heater. This, however, had the effect of clogging the circulation of hot air passing through the heater body. With my device the draft is checked in the Bunsen tube before heated air and gas enter the body of the heater and therefore, the circulation through the heater is unaffected thereby.

In hot water heaters it is particularly desirable to use a pilot light within the casing of the heater in close proximity to the burner and such pilot light must be of a very small size or the cost of gas consumption produced thereby would be too high. A small pilot light is very easy extinguished. Under ordinary conditions there is a concussion produced by the lighting of the gas and also an explosion due to the extinguishing of the gas. Concussion or explosion so caused extinguishes a small pilot light and renders its use impractical for the smaller the pilot light the easier it is to extinguish and the greater the amount of gas used at the burner the more violent is the concussion or explosion which takes place when lighting or extinguishing the gas.

By the use of my form of burner such as hereinbefore disclosed ,the valve controls the speed of the flow of the gas, the equilibrant preventing the draft of the burner changing the speed produced by the valve. By my device concussion or explosion is done away with thereby eliminating the cause for the interior pilots extinction and allowing of its use.

It may be stated that gas explosion is caused by extreme rapid combustion. In

order to control the speed of combustion it is necessary to control the speed of the flow of gas. By my valve the speed of gas flow is controlled and the control of the speed produced by the valve is maintained until the gas reaches the burner mouth. ihe speed also of the gas may be made to suit any fuel element, some gases having a higher calorific value than others and requiring a different speed. By the adjustment of my valve this speed can be produced and maintained to the point of consumption.

The object of the wire gauze and equili brant is where wire gauze is used alone there is no means to prevent the gas from burning with the same energy over its entire surface and it is invariably red hot in the center of the gauze and not so on the outer part or circumference of the gauze. By the use of my equilibrant this uneven heat is prevented and the gas burns with the same energy over the entire surface of the wire gauze thereby preventing burning out of the gauze into a hole in the center where the heat is greatest.

It may be explained that the gases pass at a greater speed through the center of the gauze than at the outside next to the wall of the Bunsen tube. This difference is caused by the friction of the gas against the outer wall of the Bunsen tube.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A. lraft controlling device for Bunsen tubes comprising laterally expansible and contractible means supported within the tube to adjustably control the gas flow through such tube.

2. in a burner, the combination with the burner base and means therein for controlling the gas flow, of a Bunsen tube extending upward from the burner base and laterally expansible and contractible means in the tube for controlling the gas flow therethrough.

8. In a burner, the combination with the burner base and means therein for controlling the fiow of gas therethrough, of a Bunsen tube extending upwardly from the burner base, and a cross piece extending diametrically across the mouth of the tube and having wings extending outwardly therefrom in V-form.

4. In a burner, the combination with the burner base and means therein for controlling the fiow of gas therethrough, of a Bunsen tube extending upwardly from the burner base, and a cross piece extending diametrically across the mouth of the tube and having wings of bendable metal extend ing outwardly therefrom in V-form.

5. A draft controlling device for Bunsen tubes comprising a cross piece adapted to be secured diametrically across the burner tube, and semi-circular wings of bendable metal extendingtherefrom in ll-form.

6. A draft controlling device for Bunsen tubes comprising a cross piece adapted to be secured diametrically across the burner tube, and semi-circular wings extending from such cross piece in \l-form.

7. in a burner, the combination of a Bunsen tube, a gas valve casing provided with a main gas passage, a valve which controls the amount of gas to pass through said main gas passage and a supplemental gas passage, a port connecting said main and said supplemental gas passage, a valve which permits or prevents the gas to pass from said main gas passage to supplemental gas passage through the port thereby controlling the speed or rate of flow of gas passing into the Bunsen tube, and an equilibrant provided with wings which are bent outwardly to the required angle to more or less close the central portion of tube thereby preventing the draft force from altering the speed or rate of flow of the gas produced by the gas valve.

8. In a burner, the combination of a Bunsen tube, a gas valve casing provided with a main gas passage, a valve which controls the amount. of gas to pass through said main gas passage and a supplemental gas passage, a port connecting said main gas passage and said supplemental gas passage, a valve which permits or prevents the gas to pass from said main gas passage to supplemental gas passage through the port thereby controlling the speed or rate of flow of the gas to pass into the Bunsen tube, an equilibrant provided with wings which are bent outwardly to the required angle to more or less close the central portion of tube thereby preventing the draft force from altering the speed or rate of flow of 'the gas produced by the burner, and a pilot light located inside the heater casing.

9. In a Bunsen burner, the combination of a wire gauze held in position at the upper end of the burner, an equilibrant pro vided with wings which are bent outwardly to the required angle to more or less close the central portion of the Bunsen tube and a valve provided with a main gas passage, means to control the amount of gas to pass therethrough, a supplemental gas pressure, a port connecting said main gas passage and said supplemental gas passage means to open or close said port to permit or prevent Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, washington D. 0. 

